Knowledge Management - Municipal Institute of Learning
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Knowledge Management
An organization's
ability to learn,
and translate
that learning
into action
rapidly, is
the ultimate
competitive
advantage.
Jack Welch
Lessons from the City of Johannesburg's review of the
Group KM Strategy
Knowledge Management Learning Exchange
1
Wednesday, 26th May 2021
Contents
• Introduction
• Background and context
– Strategic Location
– Innovation and Knowledge Management Unit mandate
• KM in the CoJ
– Group KM Pillars
• Review of the CoJ Group Knowledge Management Strategy
– Rationale for the review
– Review process
– Emerging issues
• Key lessons
• Concluding remarks
2
Introduction
The year 2020 was unlike any other
in history!
The Covid-19 pandemic has
changed the lives of almost every
person in the world – some by just a
little, most by a lot.
The outbreak of the COVID-19
pandemic was unprecedented in
the City of Johannesburg, and was
to challenge the City’s capabilities,
structures and way of conducting
services to its citizens.
It requires a shift of change and
adapting to a new normal.
3
COVID-19 has not just brought about the need for change, it also points a way forward. 4
The coronavirus has also
revealed something profound
about the way societies
should treat knowledge.
In 2010 the City of
Johannesburg benefited from
an incredible learning
experience in preparing for
and hosting the 2010 FIFA
World Cup, much of which
was brought into play during
the outbreak of the COVID-19
pandemic. Effective handling
of large-scale events and
responses to natural and
manmade emergencies is
becoming increasingly vital in
today’s world.
It is at times like these that capturing institutional memory becomes of huge
importance.
5
Strategic Location and Mandate
Group Strategy, Policy Coordination and Relations (GSPCR) seeks to:
”Thought leadership to enable strategic certainty for city-wide empowerment, service
excellence and impact”.
GSPCR Business Process Long-term
organisational strategy
and policy development
Medium and short term
Smart City Programmes integrated
development planning
Organisational
Knowledge
performance
Management &
monitoring, reporting
learning practices
and evaluation
6IKM Unit Mandate
• To ensure the practice and promotion of an effective knowledge management (KM)
practice and culture with City of Johannesburg through putting in place processes and
systems.
• Custodian of the city’s strategic knowledge through a central knowledge repository
(better practices, lessons learnt and innovative initiatives) for learning and sharing
purposes.
• Facilitation of the strategic collaboration between the City of Johannesburg and three
Higher Education Institutions (Wits, UJ & Unisa) by focusing efforts on the positioning of
Johannesburg as a Centre of Excellence for Higher Education in Africa. (research agenda
production for depts. / entities / thought leadership engagements etc)
• Coordination of knowledge exchange sessions through Joburg conversations which are
engagements amongst peers to promote sharing of ideas, City programmes and policies,
for collaboration and empowerment opportunities.
7KM in the City of Johannesburg
• The City adopted a Group KM strategy to enable CoJ to achieve and sustain its
strategic objectives as outlined in the Joburg 2040 Growth and Development Strategy
(GDS), through KM and human capital development. The City of Johannesburg
defines KM as:
“Processes used in creating, capturing and sharing of knowledge to increase
service delivery efficiency and effectiveness that contribute to the City of
Johannesburg as a world class African city”.
8KM in the City of Johannesburg
Four important high level pillars for Knowledge Management at City of Johannesburg that
would support and facilitate the City Johannesburg’s strategic goals as well as improve
policy implementation and outcomes are:
INSTITUTIONAL
KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT CAPABILITY
CAPABILITY
Policy and Strategy
Capability
Business Capability
Human Capital
Empowerment Capability
Technological Capability
Knowledge Knowledge Knowledge Knowledge
Creation Capturing Application Sharing
KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT PROCESSES 9Review of the CoJ Group KM Strategy ❶ The CoJ approved its first ‘Group ❷ Within the City, roles, responsibilities, KM Strategy’ in 2013. While much systems and City infrastructures have of this strategy remains relevant, shifted, while different approaches have there have been some significant been adopted in respect of a number of changes within both the City and its policies, processes and practices that external environment. have a direct bearing on KM. ❸ The City is also in the process of finalising its review of the Joburg 2040 Growth and Development Strategy (GDS) – the guiding strategy on which the City’s five year and annual planning processes rest. ❹ Externally, the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) has also shaped the wider context – with this, and other unforeseen disasters such as the COVID-19 pandemic, directly impacting KM possibilities and practices. 10
Review process
Organizational One on One
Desktop research
Benchmarks Interviews
Review key CoJ documentation to KM Survey
ensure alignment and relevancy 2 virtual sessions
including external KM resources Focus Group
(pre and post
review)
1 Research and document analysis 2 Stakeholder engagements
3 Review of inputs/Rewrite up 4 Consolidation 5 Finalization and approval
Final revised Group KM
Final draft of the revised Strategy & one year
Collation of inputs
Group KM Strategy supporting
implementation plan
Review and alignment
Peer review of the
revised strategy Processing through CoJ
Restructure and rewrite
document through the governance structures for
the Group KM Strategy
focus group approval (EMT, Sub-
Mayoral, Maycom)11Review of the CoJ Group KM Strategy
As part of the process of refining the City’s Group KM Strategy, it was important to answer
some fundamental questions, including: ‘What is KM, in the CoJ’s context?’ and ‘What is
it not?’.
“Sharing and capturing relevant experiences and
“The creation, collaboration, storage and dissemination of knowledge generated internally and externally.”
information to the correct users at the correct time and through the
correct channels, to help make informed and timely strategic
decisions.”
“Knowledge management relates to all the
activities we do in the City to identify key
knowledge and share that knowledge, to improve
service delivery.”
“Technical and organisational initiatives to deal with structured and
unstructured knowledge – via lessons learnt and the reuse of knowledge.….
Being able to experience the walk through of a practitioner’s experience –
and bring in commonalities and learnings, but also build on different
experiences…to improve delivery.”
“[How we…] manage and enhance the flow of information, knowledge
and communication, to retain corporate intelligence, to enhance
collaboration, and to break down barriers (the silo effect) in and
between the City and its entities.”
12Emerging Issues
Leadership and Technology and KM Strategy and
People Processes
Culture Systems implementation
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES
• The strategy is a good base document. • There is lack of a common
• The organisational benefits and the four KM understanding of KM and its benefits
pillars are articulated well as part of the within the City and its municipal
strategy. entities.
• Knowledge sharing has made it easier for • Lack of effective knowledge sharing,
teams to work together and collaborate leads to failure to learn from other
across departments and entities departments and the risk of
• Most departments have KM champions duplication of effort/initiatives.
whose role is to assist in the implementation • Access to technology is still a challenge
of KM processes and practices within the City.
• The implementation of SharePoint has • The application of knowledge is still
enabled access to documentation and area that requires enhancing.
information Knowledge adds value to an
• The City is doing well in terms of knowledge organization if it’s applied and reused.
13
generation and capturing.Key lessons
• Positioning of KM is critical.
• Strategic positioning being a KM model that links directly to the vision or strategic
agenda; and
• Structural positioning i.e. location of KM in the organization.
• Leadership buy-in to build a common commitment.
• Nurturing an organizational culture supporting the strategy implementation.
• Knowing who holds the information, knowledge and insights is critical in supporting
delivery. Ensuring that the relevant knowledge is created, captured, stored and shared
amongst employees contributes to better service delivery.
• Recognising the centrality of people to KM. One of the ways in which ‘people’ and KM
can be brought together is to reflect on KM in the context of the employment cycle.
• The KM strategy must be seen as a communication tool to guide the organization i.e.
concise and simple; ensuring a common understanding across the organization.
14Concluding remarks
• KM is not an end in itself – but instead meant to support and enable the CoJ to deliver
the 4 outcomes as depicted in the CoJ long term strategy (shift towards enhanced KM
model).
• Understanding that a KM strategy will only receive full support and buy-in- and deliver
true value – if it contributes to and enables improved day-to-day delivery, progress in
terms of the organisation's mandate and the progressive realisation of its strategic
objectives.
“Municipalities with effective KM systems have been shown to be more competitive than
others and better able to serve the needs of their residents. KM ensures that the right
information gets to the right people at the right time to make the right decisions. It
empowers and motivates staff and supports innovation and learning”
South African Cities Network
15Connect with us
Sheena Clarke
Deputy Director: Knowledge Management
Innovation and Knowledge Management Unit
Group Strategy, Policy Coordination and Relations
City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality
Tel: 011 407 6453
Cell: 082 569 0967
Email: sheenac@joburg.org.za
16Thank you
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